Just Kate: His Only Wife (Bestselling Author Collection) Page 23

“After our ranch was chosen to participate in the grazing study, Dad tried his best to get Mom to quit.” This time, Gage’s chuckle rumbled with genuine mirth. “She refused.”

  “You and your dad getting along better?” Aubrey dug around in the toolbox beside her and came up with the level, which she passed to Gage.

  How had she known what he was looking for? Old habits, again, no other explanation for it.

  “We’re not fighting. As long as I don’t get called to a fire, we manage to stand each other’s company.”

  They didn’t talk for several minutes while Gage went over to the ramp and measured for the handrails. Pulling a carpenter’s pencil from his back pocket, he jotted the different lengths he’d need on a scrap piece of wood.

  “What’s Hannah up to these days?” Aubrey asked when he returned.

  “Taking summer classes at Pineville College. She’s getting her degree in agricultural management.”

  “Good for her! She’s always loved ranching.”

  “Yep. And she’ll be able to use that degree when she takes over for the old man.”

  “Hannah’s going to manage the ranch?”

  “So she says.”

  Aubrey broke into a sunny smile. “And with her taking over, that leaves you free to be a firefighter.”

  “Will leave me free. She has another year and a half to go before she graduates, possibly longer.” Depending in part on the family’s finances, Gage added silently. He picked through the stack of two-by-twos on the ground beside the truck.

  “The Raintrees are actually going against tradition.” Aubrey shook her head in disbelief. “Who’d have believed it?”

  “Well, not all traditions. Dad still has trouble with Mom working.”

  “But not your sister?”

  “Apparently, a woman taking over the family business is okay, but holding a job outside the ranch is not okay. Yeah,” he continued before she could comment, “the rest of us have a little trouble with the distinction, too.” He laid the two-by-twos on the ground, one next to the other, sorted by size.

  “When do you sleep?” Aubrey’s green eyes narrowed on him, more thoughtful than critical

  “At night, usually. Like most people.”

  “Seriously, Gage. The ranch doesn’t run itself. Someone has to cover for your mom working part-time, your sister going to college and when your dad has a gout attack. Process of elimination leaves you.”

  “It’s not as bad as you think.”

  “What about your firefighting?”

  “What about my firefighting?” Her line of questioning reminded him too much of the arguments he had with his father. On the plus side, it took his mind off her legs.

  “Does anyone do the chores while you’re gone or do they accumulate?”

  “The chores get done, sooner or later.” Some days, a lot later.

  If they had an extra couple hundred dollars to spare, he’d hire Kenny Junior for a week. But there never seemed to be an extra ten dollars lying around, much less two hundred. Hannah’s summer school costs had depleted the family expense fund. Gage’s hazard pay was being used to build it back up in preparation of the fall roundup when they’d have no choice but to hire help.

  “You forget,” Aubrey said. “I lived on your ranch for six weeks, I know the work is never ending. No one person can do it all in without sacrificing something. I figure it’s sleep. Tell me I’m wrong.”

  “I get enough sleep.” And he did, if one considered four to six hours a night enough sleep. Maybe he should risk his father’s wrath and push Hannah to help more. She didn’t offer unless asked, using school as an excuse to avoid pitching in.

  “If you don’t take care of yourself, you’ll wind up sick, or dead from exhaustion.”

  “Okay, Nurse Stuart. I promise to get more sleep if it’ll make you happy.”

  “Joke if you want,” Aubrey snapped.

  He heaved a long sigh.

  “I’m sorry.” She was immediately contrite. “It’s not my place to tell you what to do.”

  “Forget it. I’m used to bossy women. I was married to one once.”

  She picked up a screw and threw it at him.

  “Hey!” He ducked, and the screw glanced off his shoulder.

  “I admit I’m bossy. But only because I care about you.”

  He was tempted to ask how much she cared, but held his tongue. “Thank you.”

  “Which reminds me.” She planted her fists on her hips in a classic pose. “What the heck are you doing here anyway?”

  “Building a handicap ramp?”

  She scowled at him. “You’re busy. Can’t one of the other volunteer firefighters build it?”

  “I want to help your grandmother. You’re not the only one in town who cares about her.”

  “I know, but—”

  “Dad’s having a good day. He’s handling the chores while I’m away. And if you quit your nagging, I’ll be finished in another hour. Then I can go home and get some of that sleep you insist on.”

  He reached out and cupped her chin in his palm, his fingers stroking her cheek. The gesture was automatic, something he’d done often when they were younger to shut Aubrey up and not hurt her feelings.

  Old habits again, and apparently impossible to break.

  Their gazes connected, and something akin to the sweet rush of emotion that once lit up their lives passed between them.

  The moment lasted only until the phone rang from inside the house.

  “That’s probably Grandma’s doctor. I called him earlier.” Aubrey hopped off the tailgate and slipped on her sandals. “I’ll be right back.” She dashed toward the house.

  “I’ll be waiting.”

  Gage watched her until the screen door slammed shut behind her before returning to work, already missing her company and counting the minutes until she returned.

  She didn’t, however, come right back. An hour dragged by, during which Gage did all he could on the ramp and then some. Eventually, he ran out of excuses to stay. From the periodic snatches of muted conversation drifting through the screen door, he knew she was still on the phone.

  Who could she be talking to for so damn long? Not her grandmother’s doctor, that was for sure.

  A boyfriend maybe? Gage’s gut turned to stone. He’d assumed because she hadn’t remarried, she was unattached. But what if her reluctance to get involved with him again was because she had some bozo in Tucson on the string?

  Venting his frustration on his tools, Gage chucked them into the back of his truck, missing the toolbox more times than not. The debris followed the way of the tools. Within a few minutes, his truck bed resembled a war zone. The ruckus had the neighbor, Mrs. Payne, popping out onto her porch for a look-see, but not Aubrey. She stayed inside.

  He was just climbing into the truck when he decided to say goodbye before leaving. Opening the screen door, he hollered, “Hey, in there, I’m leaving. See you later.”

  Aubrey materialized in the doorway leading to the kitchen, a portable phone stuck to her ear and a grim expression on her face. “Oh, okay. See ya later. And thanks.”

  Gage tromped back to his truck, his mood decidedly sour. He took some pleasure in the knowledge that if Aubrey were indeed talking to a boyfriend, the conversation wasn’t going well.

  *

  Aubrey closed the medicine cabinet in her grandmother’s bathroom, shut off the light and padded through the bedroom toward the door.

  “Good night, dear.” Her grandmother’s tired voice traveled to Aubrey from across the darkened room.

  She paused, a hand resting on the doorjamb. “I thought you’d be asleep already.”

  “Not quite.”

  Her grandmother had rallied after her long afternoon nap, and the two of them ate a light dinner together in front of the TV. Neither were hungry, her grandmother because of her strep throat and Aubrey because of her terse phone conversation with her father.

  Shortly after dinner and not long into Wheel of Fortu
ne, a flushed and feverish Grandma Rose retired to bed. Aubrey hoped the antibiotics would kick in soon.

  “I assume the call with your father didn’t go so great.” The bedsheets rustled as Grandma Rose changed positions.

  “How’d you guess?”

  “I woke up a couple times and heard bits and pieces of your conversation.”

  “Was I loud?” Aubrey retraced her steps back into the room.

  “No, dear. You weren’t loud.” Grandma Rose patted the edge of the mattress, and Aubrey obediently sat down. “But you looked a little downtrodden during dinner. Care to tell me what’s wrong?”

  “Nothing’s wrong.” Nothing new, at least. Not keen on discussing her father, Aubrey attempted to divert the conversation. “Annie was there, visiting the folks. She and some friends just got back from a trip to L.A. Guess they tried out for some reality television show.”

  During the fifteen minutes she’d spoken with her younger sister, Aubrey learned more than she cared to about the audition process. In many ways, she envied Annie and her free-spirited, take-life-as-it-comes attitude. Being the serious, overachieving firstborn had its drawbacks.

  “Sounds just like Annie,” Grandma Rose said with amusement. “Did she and her friends make it onto the show?”

  “They won’t find out for a few weeks. Mom sends her love and says to drink lots of fluids.” After Annie, Aubrey had talked with her mother. “She was upset to hear you have strep throat, but glad to know you’re making such excellent progress with your physical therapy. I promised I’d call her tomorrow with an update on how you’re doing. I would have brought you the portable phone if I’d known you were awake.”

  “That’s all right. I’ll talk to her tomorrow. How’s your father doing?”

  Grandma Rose might have been physically weak, but she was mentally sharp as a tack. There was no way Aubrey was going to get out of talking about her father. Everyone said she and him were too much alike. They frequently knocked heads, although even in the midst of their most heated confrontations, Aubrey understood her father loved her and only wanted what was best for her.

  “He’s fine and concerned about your recovery.”

  “He didn’t want you to come here. He wanted you to stay in Tucson.”

  “No, Grandma,” Aubrey instantly protested. “That’s not true.”

  “Yes, it is. I haven’t been his mother-in-law all these years for nothing. I can read him almost as well as your mother. Where you and your sister are concerned, anyway.”

  Aubrey expelled a long sigh. She would have rather lied but found it impossible. “You’re right. He did want me to stay in Tucson. Not for the reasons you think,” she hurriedly added. “He loves you and would have hired the best possible nursing care for you.”

  “You’re the best possible nursing care I could ever want or need.” Grandma Rose linked fingers with Aubrey, much like she had when Aubrey was little. “So, tell me, why didn’t he want you to come?”

  “It has to do with Uncle Jesse and Aunt Maureen’s deaths.”

  She sensed more than saw her grandmother’s sorrowful expression.

  “They were such lovely people. Good friends of your parents.”

  “You know I was on duty the night of the accident when they were brought in?”

  “Your mother told me. She said you took it pretty hard.”

  “Yeah, I did. Mom and Dad were in Chicago at a seminar. I hated giving them the news on the phone, but I didn’t want them hearing it from a stranger.”

  It felt good to finally talk with someone about that night. As an E.R. nurse, Aubrey had become accustomed to setting her emotions aside. It was, she’d found, the only way to survive a job where heartache and tragedy were a daily occurrence.

  “I was shocked when I recognized Jesse and Maureen beneath all the blood, and, well, I panicked briefly.” In truth, she fell into a stupor. “It took me a couple seconds to compose myself.” She’d stood like a stone statue until another nurse grabbed her by the arm and shook her.

  “It’s amazing you were able to function at all. That speaks very highly of your skill and dedication.”

  “Maybe.”

  “How can you think otherwise?”

  “Because since that night, I’ve suffered three more… moments of indecisiveness.” Aubrey looked down at her lap.

  “Oh, you poor thing.”

  “Grandma, I’m afraid.” Tears pricked Aubrey’s eyes. “If I can’t overcome this problem, I might have to quit the E.R. and change my specialty to something where I’m not required to treat accident victims.”

  A very long, very silent pause followed. Aubrey’s laugh verged on desperate.

  “Say something, will you?”

  “What does your mother think of your situation?”

  “I haven’t told her.”

  “Can I ask why?”

  “Dad feels the fewer people who know, the better.” It had occurred to Aubrey her father might be ashamed of what he perceived as a failure.

  “Well, he may be right,” Grandma Rose said reassuringly.

  “He wanted me to stay in Tucson. Face my problem head-on.” Not run away like she had in college. “And I can see where he’s coming from, even if I don’t agree.”

  “I have no doubt after a short break from the E.R., you’ll return to work and this difficulty you’re having will become a thing of the past.”

  “And if not?”

  “You go into another specialty,” Grandma Rose said simply.

  But it wasn’t so simple for Aubrey. “I don’t want to go into another specialty.”

  She could cite any number of reasons: the training she’d had, the certifications she’d earned. The plain truth was she thrived on the fast-paced environment of the E.R. Her aspirations were to one day manage the emergency department of a large metropolitan hospital. Oh, sure, she could find a modicum of enjoyment in other fields of nursing, but would she find the same satisfaction?

  The desolation filling Aubrey abated, and some of the determination her grandmother had been talking about rushed in to take its place. “Maybe Dad was right and coming here was a mistake. I should be at work. Not hiding out in Blue Ridge.”

  “You’re going back to Tucson?”

  Aubrey heard her grandmother’s panic and quickly reassured her. “I promised you I’d stay for six weeks. But afterward, yes. I have to go back. You understand, don’t you?”

  “I do.” Grandma Rose lowered herself onto her pillow. “Will Gage?”

  The question, from out of left field, gave Aubrey a start. “I’m sure he will.”

  “And if he doesn’t?”

  “It really makes no difference.”

  “He’s still in love with you, Aubrey.”

  Okay. She hadn’t seen that coming, either. “We’re friends is all.” Did friends usually flirt and kiss?

  “And you’re still in love with him.”

  “I am not!”

  “Hmmm,” was Grandma Rose’s only comment.

  Aubrey collected her thoughts and tried to put them in a semblance of order. “We were married once and, yes, in love for a long time before that. There are bound to be lingering feelings.”

  A lot of lingering feelings. If her grandmother, a sick, elderly woman, had noticed, it was worse than Aubrey realized. She really had to keep Gage at a distance, not encourage him as she’d done today.

  “After you, work is my number-one priority,” Aubrey said with conviction. “Whatever it takes, I’m going to overcome this freezing problem.”

  “You will. What you went through, seeing someone you love die in front of your eyes…” Grandma Rose’s voice thinned and trailed off. “Takes a body a while to get over it.”

  Her grandmother would know, having been at her grandfather’s side when he’d passed away in the hospital.

  She found and squeezed Aubrey’s hand again. “I’m so proud of you, sweetheart. Always have been. You’ll survive this ordeal and be a better nurse for it in
the long run.”

  Tears pricked Aubrey’s eyes anew; tears of sentimentality rather than sadness. She was glad she’d come to Blue Ridge, especially glad she’d had this talk with her grandmother. It made all the recent disagreements with her father fade into nothingness.

  “You’re tired.” She stood and rearranged the mussed bedsheets. “It was wrong of me to keep you up.”

  “I’m glad you did.”

  “So am I.” Aubrey kissed her grandmother’s cheek. “But you need your rest. It’s the only way you’ll get better.”

  “Good night, sweetheart. See you in the morning.”

  Aubrey closed the door on her way out and shuffled across the hall to her room. It had been a trying day from beginning to end, her emotions all over the place. Tomorrow, when her mind was clear and her body refreshed, she’d address the problem with Gage. If she didn’t take immediate steps to tone down their highly charged attraction, her leaving in another four weeks would wind up a carbon copy of the last time, complete with hurt and anger.

  Unfortunately, thoughts of Gage refused to be put off until tomorrow. After tossing and turning for a good half hour and mashing her pillow into an unidentifiable lump, Aubrey got up and prowled the quiet house, stopping first to peek in on her grandmother.

  The hall clock told her it was past ten. A cool breeze wafting in through the screen door convinced her a breath of fresh air might be just the ticket to calm her jangled nerves. Aubrey switched on the porch light. Outside, the breeze followed through with every tantalizing promise it had made, sifting through her hair and caressing the parts of her not covered by the gym shorts and tank top she’d worn to bed.

  She went to the far end of the porch and leaned against the column. Eventually, she relaxed, lulled by chirping crickets and a pair of hooting owls. Both nature’s symphony and her respite came to an abrupt halt when a pair of headlights swung into her grandmother’s driveway, accompanied by the sound of spitting gravel.

  “Who in the world…”

  Pushing off the column, she walked tentatively toward the porch steps. She wasn’t worried. Being Blue Ridge and not Tucson, her late night visitor was, in all likelihood, no stranger.

  The vehicle, a large, looming shadow in the moonless night, came to a stop behind Aubrey’s SUV. The headlights flicked off and the driver’s side door opened. A lone figure emerged—tall, broad-shouldered and undeniably male.